National identity in historical video games: An analysis of how Civilization V represents the past

Abstract

Although the last two decades have seen a vast increase in studies that analyse banal nationalism in media, there is one medium that has largely been ignored in these discussions: video games. This article fills part of this gap by analysing the way in which the historical strategy game Civilization V represents the Past and what role it gives nations within historical processes. This video game was marketed globally by an American company, but it evokes Spanish, Japanese, and English nationalist narratives and imagery. Although globalization and nationalism are often framed as opposing forces, this is hardly the case here. This paper will combine insights of Game Studies and Nationalism Studies to illustrate how the elements that conform Civilization V incentivise and enable players to re-enact a narrative that portrays essentialised nation-states as the only relevant actors in the past, present, and future of humankind. Although a product of globalization, Civilization V strengthens rather than erodes national boundaries.